I had my first student teaching observation today from my college adviser and it went really well! He came and observed the first part of the morning, which I had been in total control of for a few weeks now. I was very comfortable with the routine so I just pretended like he wasn't in the back taking notes and it went extra smooth today :) Thank you 1st graders! I think they must've known he was an important mister because they were extra wonderful. I met with him briefly after my lesson and he gave me my evaluation sheet he filled out. He gave me 6 out of 7's on the proficiency scale, which he said is very uncommon this early in the game! He said most student teachers receive 3s and 4s in the basic category. So, I was pretty excited that he thought so highly of my teaching and my lesson!
Today during guided reading Mrs. Hoffman read a story called 14 Cows for America by Carmen Agra Deedy.
This book is about a Kenyan village honoring America after the 9/11 attacks by giving them 14 of their village's cows. I had never heard the story until today and listening to Mrs. Hoffman prep the students for the story was something I found to be so interesting. I never even thought until today "How do you tell a 1st grader about the 9/11 attacks?"
I had nothing.
These children weren't even born when tragedy struck. I was only 4 grades above them when it happened.
How on Earth to you explain to them the events, the casualties, the effects of everything that happened that day?
How.......HOW do you possibly answer them when their little hand goes up and asks in their innocent voice "WHY did people do that?"
I honestly don't think I will ever have a mastered approach, or a good answer to their questions.
Mrs. Hoffman approached with perfect grace and the appropriate words to use and the amount of information to let them know of these things, without overwhelming or scaring them. As she talked about these events and then went into the story, 14 Cows for America, I could NOT keep it together! I sat in the back and listened to the story, watching these little babies and tears were just streaming down my face. I hope I someday have an approach similar to Mrs. Hoffman's on subjects tough as this.
to sum up my sappy today post, here's a picture of 2 pieces of paper I received from a student today. The conversation with him went like this:
"Miss Faust I made you a heart! I cut it out and look that's me and you in there!" -Student
"Thank you so much! I love it!" - Me
*3 minutes later, he comes back up and hands me the second piece of paper*
"2 hearts?! Thank you so much!" - Me
"No, this one is a potato." - Student
I have a feeling my 2nd heart started out that way, and may have ended up being a potato!
Hey, when life hands you a broken heart....make it a potato :)
You are some special young lady! The children that you reach out to you in life and in your teaching career are very fortunate! Love you much, Girlie! And by the way, the only reason you didn't get 7's is that your evaluator had to have some way to show improvement between now and the end of the semester!:) So proud of you!
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